Chapters authored
Exploration of Solar Cosmic Ray Sources by Means of Particle Energy Spectra
Through the analysis of the energy spectrum of 12 ground level enhancements (GLE) of solar protons, a contribution in the understanding of the generation process of flare particles is attempted. Theoretical spectra of protons are derived by considering either they do not lose energy within the acceleration volume or that they are decelerated during the acceleration process. By comparing the theoretical source spectra with the experimental spectra, it is claimed that the generation process of solar particles develops under three main temperature regimes: the efficiency of particles acceleration is relatively high in cold-regimens decreasing while increasing the temperature of the medium. It is shown that in some events energy losses are able to modulate the acceleration spectrum within the source during the short time scale of the phenomenon, whereas in other events energy losses are completely negligible during the acceleration. It is argued that acceleration takes place in closed magnetic field lines and predicted the expansion and compression of the source material in association with the generation process of particles. This study allows us to estimate the range of variation from event to event of several parameters of the source and the acceleration process itself.
Part of the book: Cosmic Rays